attach a ms word file and scan file for info

[shibby1011ph]

can anyone help me?

using asp, i would like to upload a ms word file and then scan that particular files for certain information...for example, an ms word file that contains a list of students enrolled in a particular class, i would like to get the names of those students. what i would like to do is attach that file and then the program would automatically get the names.

please help thanks!

[raf]

I don't think this is possible. (Lucky for you there are people on this forum that are a lot smarter then me, so maybe ....)
Buth anyway, i wouldn't invest to much time try to get this running because i can't imagen it working verry well.

I would suggest 3 ways to get your info:

1. Create a form (in HTML) that is posted to your ASP page (so you immediately have the information in the format and order that you need it.) This comes down to : use only one tool for input and processing instead of trying to mingle on and off-line tools (you know it makes sence !)
The only way that an uploaded file can be processed like that, is when this file was created by you, has a fixed structure (using a template or something) and is filled in correctly (which means you need to build in restrictions). And obviously, this woun't be that userfriendly + Word will not be the best package for this sort a thing

2. Create a form (In Word, Excel or Access) that can be filled in off-line, and that is exported to an 'HTML form' (it probably will be an ASP page that contains the form-tags + the info (that you probably will have to save first in XML) + can then be posted to an ASP. It's somewhat more tricky, and I wouldn't do it, buth ...

3. If it really has to be filled in of-line : I'd go for an Access form that the user can fill in or that they can use to import the info (Access can actually deal with a lot of input formats.). On my webpage I would then create a field where the user can type in the location of the Access file on his PC. The content of this field, would then be inserted into my connectionstring. It then runs further as a regular databasedriven app. You could even update/process the data in the users database.
Or migrate the data to another database.
(so you don't upload the file, buth only the ordered and structured data)

Hopes this helps you a bit further.
(Buth I really hope someone smarther knows how to do what you want to do, because it sure sounds good : just upload a Wordfile that some user created and pick up the info you need. I know a bit or two about textual analysis, buth never came across something that could do just that.)

There are speciallysed packages (like Teleform) where you can design forms that can be printed, filled in, scanned in, analyzed + where the written down data is converted into caracters and numbers and is exported to a database. I've worked with Teleform, and i think it's great, buth only because my boss is willing to spend a lot of money on it. (about 12 000 $ for each package. works with hardwarekey :( )

[whammy]

For that kind of thing you'd be better of using a database or XML... although there MAY be proprietary microsoft methods for doing this, they are probably hard to interpret (that is, if you can find them... good luck using search on Microsoft.com - for someone who provides this kind of technology, their search doesn't work well at all...).